The proprietors are obviously being close-mouthed for now, but something about the way the blog's author used only their first names seemed to suggest they were already a known quantity in the local restaurant world.

Had a lovely dinner there last night. I am hesitant to write about it considering the place is so small and they don't take reservations. Nevertheless, they deserve the kudos. It's a VERY small restaurant. Must only hold 30 seats (one table on first floor) and the remaining on the second floor (restaurant resembles a little house). The lovely owner greeted me with a big, perfectly Italian welcome. Instead of an entree, I went with two starters - warm artichoke salad with jumbo lump crab, mache salad with a grape must reduction (which tasted like a good aged balsamic vinegar) - this was delicious! fresh, good size, good amount of crab, the warm shaved artichoke sitting under the crab made the difference. i then had the fava bean soup with grilled cuttlefish. there were just a few small pieces of grilled cuttlefish on top of the soup as it was a starter. the soup was beautiful - pure fava bean flavor with good extra virgin olive oil. my friend had the grilled salmon special which she was happy with. can't wait to go back when they have their liquor license.www.adovenice.com

We ate there Saturday night. Fantastic. The owner, Paolo, is a real charmer, as are his waiters. I had a dish of tagliatelle with fried zucchni, teardrop tomatoes, and walnut pesto, which was delicious. And I dislike zucchini and walnuts. Ann decided to splurge on a plate of ravioli with fresh shaved truffle ($35). Unfortunately, and through no fault of the chef, the truffle was more or less flavorless. When Ann brought this to our waiter's attention, Paolo himself came over to apologize and take it off the bill. Desserts - semifreddo and panna cotta - were also fantastic. Four people, one appetizer, four pastas (one comped), three desserts, no wine, $85. We intend to go again as soon as possible, even before they get their liquor license. (And I was pleased to see the place full despite the absence of wine.) Good bread, too.

I'm so happy Paolo has a hit! I can't wait to try it, meant to last week, but the week got away from me...

Meanwhile, Hidden is undergoing renovations. It would be a shame for it to lose its charm, it was one of my favorite places to get a drink. But seeing the changes the new owners did before they closed to overhaul leave me with low expectiations. They, for some reason, decided to brighten it up - literally - with bright lights along the ceiling, and added flat screens all around. Sad.